diff --git a/pkgs/build-support/fetchgit/nix-prefetch-git b/pkgs/build-support/fetchgit/nix-prefetch-git
index f6a317a888a5..4e6f25b8dd7d 100755
--- a/pkgs/build-support/fetchgit/nix-prefetch-git
+++ b/pkgs/build-support/fetchgit/nix-prefetch-git
@@ -105,10 +105,6 @@ for arg; do
     fi
 done
 
-if test -n $deepClone; then
-    leaveDotGit=true
-fi
-
 if test -z "$url"; then
     usage
 fi